SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.–He pounded two singles through the right side of the infield, tossed a laser to first base after backhanding a ball in the hole and even stole a bag.

During the Giants’ Thursday night win over the Mariners, everything seemed normal for Kelby Tomlinson.

Normalcy, though, has been hard to come by of late.

“He came here under some really difficult circumstances, losing his brother-in-law and grandfather, so tonight was a good night for him,” manager Bruce Bochy said.

In a span of three days in February, Tomlinson lost his paternal grandfather, Harold Tomlinson, and his wife Tiffany’s brother, T.J. Prater, who the Giants’ infielder considered one of his closest friends.

“It just almost didn’t seem real,” Tomlinson said.

Tomlinson planned to attend FanFest at AT&T Park before traveling to spring training in Scottsdale, but the tragedies altered his itinerary.

On February 6, Prater was working on his truck when it slipped out of park and into reverse, rolling over his neck. He was 35.

A barber in the small town of Burden, Kansas, which has a population of roughly 550, Tomlinson called Prater a friend to everyone.

More than 1,000 people attended his funeral.

“His wife said when they would go to Wal-Mart and when they needed something that would take five minutes, he would be there like he was a politician running for mayor, and he wasn’t even running for mayor,” Tomlinson said. “He cared about people, loved people.”

Tomlinson’s grandfather battled dementia for a few years, but became very sick after Christmas. When his kidney started to fail, a doctor told Tomlinson’s mother that Harold had about a week to live. The doctor delivered the news around the time Prater died suddenly, so Tomlinson’s mom waited to tell her son.

Within five days, Tomlinson attended two funerals.

He then reported to spring training.

“I think baseball has kind of been my escape,” Tomlinson said. “It’s the place you can go and get away from everything else that’s going on in the world. It’s just a place where you’re not thinking about anything else.

“I do remember the first time driving up to the field in spring training. It’s like, man, this is going to be different without T.J.”

Prater and his wife Sheena were married in 2005, and he purchased the Palace Barber Shop, an old-fashioned style shop in Winfield, Kansas in 2010. The husband and wife had three daughters, the oldest of which was born around the time Tomlinson met Tiffany in 2011.

As Tiffany’s oldest brother, Tomlinson called Prater her “guardian.” It took Tomlinson a bit to break down the barrier, but once he did, he and Prater became fast friends.

“We almost felt like he was going to walk in the front door at any time,” Tomlinson said. “You didn’t really understand it and now you have these moments where you know he would have texted you, you know he would have called you. And he doesn’t. That’s when it gets hard.”

Tomlinson said most of his teammates know what he’s endured in the last month, and have supported him every step of the way.

A reserve infielder for each of the past three seasons, Tomlinson is working to secure a job on the Giants’ 25-man roster behind shortstop Brandon Crawford, who dealt with his own family tragedies last year.

Tomlinson’s performance on Thursday night is a classic case of how “Tommy-ball,” as Bochy calls it, helps the club.

This spring, Tomlinson is counting on the club to help him, too.

“This is your family away from family,” Crawford said. “You come here and it’s kind of a break from everything else going on at home, with relatives like with Kelby. It’s kind of an escape I guess from everything else. You come out here and you’re just worried about baseball.”

Kerry Crowley is a multimedia beat reporter covering the San Francisco Giants. He spent his early days throwing curveballs in San Francisco’s youth leagues before studying journalism at Arizona State University. Kerry has covered every level of baseball, from local preps to the Cape Cod League, and is now on a quest to determine which Major League city serves the best cheeseburger.